Battle Ground Academy coach Jan Morrissey encourages her team during Saturday’s Division II-A championship against Evangelical Christian School.
Battle Ground Academy’s Chloe Tremblay (26) battles for possession against Evangelical Christian School’s Katie Geisewite during Saturday’s Division II-A championship at Richard Siegel Park.
Battle Ground Academy coach Jan Morrissey encourages her team during Saturday’s Division II-A championship against Evangelical Christian School.
Battle Ground Academy’s Chloe Tremblay (26) battles for possession against Evangelical Christian School’s Katie Geisewite during Saturday’s Division II-A championship at Richard Siegel Park.
MURFREESBORO — After losing five key seniors from last year’s state championship squad, not many thought the Battle Ground Academy girls soccer team had what it took to return to a second straight state title match.
The Lady Wildcats did, but didn’t have enough to take down Evangelical Christian School in Saturday’s Division II-A championship, suffering a 4-1 defeat to the Lady Eagles at Richard Siegel Soccer Complex.
“We battled out there, but our battle was no match for ECS,” BGA coach Jan Morrissey said. “They didn’t have any weaknesses anywhere, and it was hard to take advantage of anything without being on the top of our game.”
BGA (12-9-3), which captured an overtime win over St. George’s in Friday’s semifinal, jumped out to an early advantage, thanks to Chloe Tremblay’s third set piece goal of the tournament, but things quickly went off the rails.
“I’m not sure if we had the legs to complete this game,” Morrissey said. “I think (Friday’s) game, that was a bit of a struggle for us to get through. Playing that extra 20 minutes, I think that makes a big difference.”
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Tremblay, a junior midfielder, connected on a 22nd-minute corner kick, curving the ball past goalkeeper Sarah Houpt for an unassisted goal to spot BGA an early one-goal lead.
However, the Lady Eagles managed a first-half equalizer, knotting things up on Maddy Stolnicki’s 31st-minute score — the first of four unanswered goals from ECS (17-3).
“The wind got taken out after that first goal,” said Morrissey, whose roster includes just one senior in goalkeeper Aracely Turcios. “You have some youth out there and that may or may not have played a role in it, but it’s a good thing. That’s a good lesson for them to learn, and we’re going to be back here next year we hope.”
Turcios turned away seven of ECS’s 11 shots on goal, but Stolnicki, freshman defender Shae Carruth and junior forward Molly Martin each found the back of the net in a three-minute span early in the second half.
“We’ve got a lot of kids coming back next year,” Morrisey said. “Along the road we learned a lot of good lessons in this postseason run, and I don’t necessarily think we were supposed to be here. We got here, and I think it’s good for them to really understand what it’s all about.”
Reach Michael Murphy at 615-259-8262 and on Twitter @Murph_TNsports.